Sikhs trash own community centre for selling alcohol

Two hundred Sikh protesters trashed their own community centre last night in a
violent protest against the sale of meat and alcohol at a private party.

The demonstration outside the centre began peacefullyPhoto: CATERS

10:40AM BST 29 May 2011

The violent scenes flared after a peaceful protest turned ugly when members of the mob clashed with police trying to calm the situation on Saturday.

Police from all over the West Midlands were called to the Sikh Cultural Centre in Dudley in a bid to deal with the angry protesters thought to be from the UK Sangat - which protests against code breaking temples.

A police chopper had to be scrambled to monitor the violent scenes from above.

And one policeman was left with head injuries after protesters began pelting cops with bricks, bottles and missiles.

Protesters then forced their way in to the centre, barricaded themselves inside and trashed the centre - causing "significant" damage.

The tense five hour stand-off also left two demonstrators nursing head injuries and another policeman with dental injuries.

Protest organisers said last night: "All Sikhs should be aware of the basic Sikh tenets that meat and alcohol are not permissible in the Sikh faith.

"The centre owners have insulted the Sikh faith and violated Sikh Maryada by allowing a party to take place at the Sikh Cultural Centre."

The demonstration was organised after managers at the centre agreed to serve alcohol and meat at a private party set to take place that night.

But after practicing members of the Sikh community caught wind of the plans, a group gathered at the centre around 12.45pm on Saturday.

As the mobs numbers spiralled, some protesters picked up missiles and hurled them at police.

Specialist officers rushed to the scene to help negotiations between the militant Sikhs and besieged management staff.

And at one point a coach had to be given a police escort into the area - which had been cordoned-off - just to allow innocent centre users caught up in the stand-off to escape.

The violent stand-off only ended at around 6pm when managers at the centre caved in to the mobs demands and agreed to prohibit the sale of meat and alcohol.

Last night police said "significant" damage had been caused to the inside of the community centre, which remained cordoned off last night to allow forensic teams to examine the area.

Over five hours of CCTV footage has also been seized and will be trawled through in a bid to identify the ring leaders.

Chief Inspector Deb Doyle, who led the police response to the disorder, said: "What started as a peaceful protest soon turned to violence when a minority of people started throwing missiles at officers and then forced their way inside the centre.

"Once inside they have vandalised the building and refused to leave until the centre managers agreed to ban the supply of meat and alcohol on the premises.

"I would urge those responsible for the violence to hand themselves in to their local police station immediately or face officers arresting them at home in the very near future."

A 28-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of violent disorder but was released on police bail pending further enquiries.